Alaska News Nightly: November 4, 2009

Wed, November 4, 2009
Posted in Alaska News Nightly

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Rural Subcabinet Wraps Up Latest Visits
Tim Bodony, APRN – Galena
The Alaska Rural Action Subcabinet completed its latest round of visits to rural villages this week, stopping into Tanana, Ruby, and Galena on the Yukon River. The subcabinet consists of commissioners and deputies from several state agencies, and is charged with reporting to the governor on the needs and successes of rural Alaska.

White House to Host Tribal and Native Leaders Thursday
Lori Townsend, APRN – Anchorage
Hundreds of Tribal leaders from across the nation are gathering in Washington DC in anticipation of tomorrow’s meeting with President Obama and cabinet secretaries to talk about the concerns in Native communities and the federal governments role in addressing them.

Obama Administration Seeks Collaboration on Oceans Policy
Libby Casey, APRN – Washington, DC
The Obama Administration is working on crafting a new ocean policy – and the leaders involved say it will take unprecedented collaboration among agencies to make it work. Oversight of ocean-issues now falls to different departments, divided into areas like fisheries, offshore natural resources, marine life, and Coast Guard operations.

Environmentalists Distance Themselves on Obama’s Plans for Federal Fisheries
Steve Heimel, APRN – Anchorage
An environmental group that has close ties with a number of officials in the Obama administration is seeking to distance itself from the push to manage federal fisheries with quota sharing plans. The Pew Environment Group said it still believes catch shares can work, but not in all situations.

Mayor’s Race in Fairbanks Still Undecided
Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks
The race for Fairbanks borough mayor is close, but it appears Luke Hopkins has enough of a lead to win. So far, Hopkins is 617 votes ahead of Tammie Wilson in the 2 way mayoral run off. Borough Clerk Mona Drexler announced the numbers last night, cautioning there are still a lot of votes to be tallied.

Nonprofits Tally Results of Pick, Click, Give
Ed Schoenfeld, CoastAlaska – Juneau
Nonprofits around the state are tallying their contributions from the new PFD check-off program. It’s the Pick-Click-Give campaign, which brought in $550,000 statewide. The Food Bank of Alaska took in the most money from the program, more than $28,000. Alaska Public Telecommunications, which runs APRN, KSKA and KAKM will receive $19,000 dollars.

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